Substrate opinions

LeafsFan created the topic: Substrate opinions

I ask way to many questions on here I know. But I'm looking for some opinions on substrates. I'm setting up my 100 gallon tank for my Oscar in about a week and I am trying to decide if I want to go with gravel or sand. I used both before and currently have sand in the smaller tank my Oscar will be moved out of soon as the 100 is cycled. I know they each have pros and cons but I'm just looking for opinions from people with more experience then me and what would benefit my Oscar in the long run. And another question to add in here is I just bought one of the gravel vacs that hook up to your sink for easy cleaning and filling but the concern I have is if you fill your tank back up right from the faucet your putting unconditioned water that contains chlorine right into the tank with the fish so you wouldn't be able to treat is fast enough before it comes in contact with the fish. Does chlorine in the water now effect your fish for a short period of time or should I just stick to filling buckets, treating it, then dumping them in the tank? (Sorry for so many questions I'm a little bit new to the hobby)

Suprd71 replied the topic: Substrate opinions

Never too many questions. You need to use a quality conditioner. Seachem Prime liquid or Safe powder allows you to instantly use tap water. Drain tank, add conditioner, refill. No need to wait. For cycling, if you use your current filter on the new 100, you can add the fish as soon as your temp matches his current water. Your established AC70 will keep your cycle intact until the new filter grows its own bacteria colony, couple of months. For substrate, its your choice, there is not one better than the other. Whatever you choose, keep it thin, just enough to cover the bottom. Thick substrate will hold a lot of waste and debris, and will also accumulate ammonia pockets. My personal choice for ease of cleaning is round river pebbles. Light colored with a dark background on the tank back.

ernie replied the topic: Re:Substrate opinions

Suprd71 has answered all of your questions with substrate I use black gravel and also have a black background in my tank it seems to work well with the colour of my tiger Oscars. Substrate is just a personal choice, some use gravel some sand and some bare bottom.If you do use substrate not too thick around half inch to an inch for ease of cleaning.

daddadoo7 replied the topic: Re:Substrate opinions

Like surpd stated prime is the way to go. The substrate is up to you. I have used both. Currently using black gravel and black back round. I like the way it make the colors really pop. Pool filter sand looks great too. Noth have negatives and positives. For me though I was worried about using pfs with an fx6 so I went with gravel. The pfs will be quicker to vac but the poop will be way more visible (will just sit on top of the sand) the gravel will hide most of the poop but be a little more involved with gravel vac'ing

DMD123 replied the topic: Substrate opinions

In my 210g I use the CaribSea Peace River sand which is a bigger grain and is easy to keep up. It is not too fine and the waste sits on the top to be vacuumed up quickly. In my 72g bowfront I use a cheap sand called 'Lapis Lustre', which looks a lot like the Peace river in my big tank. It is an economy sand that can be found at building supply places and it is a cheap way to put down substrate. It is a mix of fine and course sand, so a bit inconsistent but looks good for low dollars. In my 40B I use a gravel.

I like the look of gravel but hate the way food and waste collect in it. The sand is much easier to maintain.

DBLN8 replied the topic: Substrate opinions

I've never used play sand (have pool filter sand in all my tanks) but I've heard it is very cloudy when its first put in the tank. A very slow fill up and a pre-filter on the inlet tubes would probably help with that problem.